


The mark that never came

by duckiesandlemons



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Angst, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Unrequited Love, lots of overall pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-20
Updated: 2013-10-20
Packaged: 2017-12-29 22:22:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1010811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/duckiesandlemons/pseuds/duckiesandlemons
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Sorry, I’m sorry Kurrokochi you must be so uncomfortable now I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to,” and the apologies come out so fast now and Kise is probably crying (or still was).</p>
            </blockquote>





	The mark that never came

**Author's Note:**

> Written while thinking about the identifying soul mate marks cliche and lo and behold out comes this. I am so sorry let me escort myself to the door.

When Kuroko’s phone goes off it’s right when he gets home from the kindergarten.  The caller ID flashes with a familiar name—persistent and loud just like the person calling him—and Kuroko picks it up the moment he sits down.  “Hello?” he places his bag down on the table, opens it up to pull out colorful assignments.  He expects the call to last a while and plans to grade some papers during that time.

“Kurokocchi,” the whine on the other end is pulled out into a long drawl.  Kuroko is familiar with it.  Even though Kise is out of the country more often than not the times they do get together are spent at a bar.  Kise is drunk, and in a fit of alcohol induced stupor had called him.

“Yes, Kise-kun?” grading papers can wait for a bit.  This requires some delicacy.

“What time is it?  Over there, I mean?”

Kuroko looks at his watch, eyes passing over the black mark resting on the back of his hand.  “Four o’clock,” he answers.  A sniffle and sigh, the sound of someone falling backwards on a bed.

“Ahhh, I wish it was four here.  It’s really late here, Kurokocchi.  Like…really late!”

“You’re drunk.”

“Am not!”

His gaze moves from his watch to around the kitchen of the apartment he lives in with Aomine, catches the note on the fridge about how the other will be late today because he was on duty.  That means Kuroko might end up eating alone tonight, something he is fine with.  It just means he’ll make something special the next time they get to eat together again.  “I miss Japan,” Kise continues.  “I mean, over here is nice but it’s not Japan, it’s not at all!”  Kuroko expects Kise to continue, rambling on like he always did (because drunk—or at least slightly tipsy—Kise’s lips became looser than usual), but the other end goes quiet after that.  Too quiet and Kuroko wonders if the blonde’s stomach decided to revolt.  No, Kuroko would have heard that. 

A few more seconds pass.

“Kise-kun?”

“Do you know why, Kurokocchi?  Why it’s not like Japan at all?”

He hesitates, “Why?”

“Because you’re not here,” Kise’s voice cracks, a sort of harsh sound that startles Kuroko.  No, what startles Kuroko is Kise’s words.  The broken voice, the trembling cadence that meant he was about to cry, it all makes Kuroko worried.  He thought for sure that Kise had found his significant other, his soul mate (thought it had been in Kasamatsu or maybe someone else), thought that the mark already appeared on the pilot’s skin.  “You’re not here and I’m really envious, Kurokocchi, I am,” a hiccupping sob, Kise trying hard to reign everything in but failing.

Kuroko almost chokes on his next words, “Of who?”

“Of Aominecchi, of course.”

“Why?”

“Because…because Aominecchi always wins, regardless of what I do.  He wins in one and one and he wins—he wins when it comes to having you as a soul mate.”

It makes Kuroko think back to all the times that Kise has been around him, the furtive looks at Kuroko’s hands or his arms, the back of his neck, the times he tried to pass off looking at Kuroko’s chest or stomach or hips in the changing room as just him moving his head.  Kuroko always knew Kise had liked him, just thought of it as a passing crush and nothing more, but with this information now in hand he knew otherwise.  Kise had been looking for a mark, one that would potentially appear on his skin and hopefully match one on Kise. 

If Kise had one.

The news causes Kuroko to squirm in his seat, looking guilty, so he repeats what he said earlier, “Kise, you’re drunk.”

“I’m n—okay, maybe I am, just a bit,” and it sounds so tired.

“What happened?”

“Party, drank more than I wanted to I guess.”

“You should sleep.”

“No.”

“Kise-ku—“

“I just want to hear your voice,” a rustle, more movement, and a rough groan.  “Even though I know I can never have you as my soul mate I still like hearing you.  Makes me happy.” 

More silence, Kuroko not quite sure what to say, and then Kise is speaking again.

“I was really hopeful, ya know, that maybe this time for sure I can get what I want—that something good will happen.  I mean, maybe I can beat Aominecchi for something, maybe the love that I had…have…will come true but the mark appeared on you and Aominecchi and—“

“Please stop.”

“Sorry, I’m sorry Kurrokochi you must be so uncomfortable now I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to,” and the apologies come out so fast now and Kise is probably crying (or still was).

“Don’t apologize Kise-kun, don’t.  It’s not your fault, don’t worry.”

“But it is, it is!  I feel so bad—“

Kuroko holds his breath. 

“It is because—“

He knows what’s coming.

“Because—“

His palms are sweaty and his heart beating erratically in his chest.

“I still love you,” there’s so much raw emotion in Kise’s voice that Kuroko has to bite his lip to stop his own tears.  To stop from apologizing, from feeling guilty, because he knows he would never be able to return those feelings.  His attachment to Aomine is too strong, something he had always been harboring ever since he first saw the man play basketball.  They both remain quiet, Kuroko saying something he’s not quite sure his mouth is moving on auto-pilot, and Kise responding.  A few more minutes pass after that before Kise finally says he’s going to hang up and apologizes (again) for being such a mess.

“Wait,” Kuroko gets out, “Kise-kun wait, I have a question!”

“…yeah?”

“Do you have one?  A mark, I mean?”

Kise laughs, short and shaken, “Of course not, Kurokocchi.  It never appeared.”

The words leave Kuroko stunned, all of them a heavy weight in his gut that leaves him a bit stumped.  He can’t bring himself to do much after that call so he just goes about his day as best he can until bed time finally rolls around.

(When he wakes up in the morning, Aomine curled around him, he notices his phone has one new message on it—it’s from Kise that reads _Please forget everything I said yesterday it was a horrible, horrible mistake to call you like that_ ; Kuroko still thinks about it)


End file.
